Rashed Abu hashem

An abject cruelty, an unlimited inhumanity: this is what Hamas embodies. The unbearable images showing Israeli hostages held in Gaza remind us of this horror. We think with deep emotion of Evyatar David, Rom Braslavski, all the hostages still held captive, as well as their families and loved ones who have been plunged into hell for more than 660 days. France’s absolute priority and imperative is the immediate release of all hostages. We continue to act tirelessly toward this goal — to obtain their unconditional release, to promptly restore the ceasefire, and to enable the massive delivery of humanitarian aid, still blocked at Gaza’s borders. But this will not be enough: this effort must be accompanied by a political solution for the day after. That solution is the two-State solution, with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace. It is the only possible path toward a future where justice, security, and dignity are guaranteed for all the peoples of the region. Let there be no ambiguity: within this political vision that we uphold, we demand the total demilitarization of Hamas, its complete exclusion from any form of governance, and recognition of Israel by the State of Palestine.